


Drowned Rats

by San Antonio Rose (ramblin_rosie)



Category: Maverick (TV)
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:49:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27615797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ramblin_rosie/pseuds/San%20Antonio%20Rose
Summary: Bart's expecting Beau to meet him at a certain hotel. He's even expecting the downpour that beats Beau to town. He's not expecting what Beau brings into the hotel with him.
Collections: Hold Me: A Comfort Prompfest





	Drowned Rats

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt "Any or original, finding a stray animal (any kind of animal) in the rain" for sholio's Hold Me comfort comment-fic meme on Dreamwidth, with one line inspired by the _Hogan's Heroes_ ep "Klink vs. the Gonculator." Others had already done kittens and dogs, but this image wouldn't leave me alone. (I do know getting wet can be Bad for this particular critter; we can just assume that Maverick luck holds and what comes next is funny and not tragic.)
> 
> Also, before anyone asks, I'm not planning to continue this ficlet.

"Ugh," said Beau, shaking the water out of the folds of his oilskin raincoat as he entered the hotel lobby. "It's utterly _filthy_ out there."

Bart, who had gotten in ahead of the storm and was thus warm and dry, looked up from his newspaper to see Beau ineffectually wiping rainwater off his face while more streamed down from his hair, which was in a truly sad state. The reason was that Beau was cradling his hat in the crook of his arm.

"I can just imagine what Pappy would say if he could see you," said Bart, setting the newspaper aside and going over to his dripping cousin. "Why on earth—"

"I have a good reason," Beau interrupted and tilted his hat to show Bart a ball of wet brown fur. Said ball of fur startled at the movement and raised a long-eared head just enough to turn one wide, frightened eye in Bart's direction.

Bart stared at the rabbit. Then he stared at Beau.

"I've no idea why it was in town," Beau explained. "I saw it come out from under the boardwalk as I left the livery stable. It was beginning to flood under there and—"

Bart sighed. Beau had always been like this, even before the unfortunate incident with the medal (although Bart still didn't understand why Uncle Bentley had let Pappy exile Beau to England for five years over that). Not that Bret and Bart didn't have their own hearts of gold, but they usually hid them under black fleece. Pappy called Beau the white sheep of the family for a reason.

What Bart said aloud was, "You had to put it in your _hat_?"

"Have you ever tried to carry a rabbit?" Beau countered. "They _kick_."

"Well, what are we gonna do with it, take it to the kitchen and ask the cook to make Hasenpfeffer?"

Beau swiped fruitlessly at his face again with a sigh. "I don't know. I just... I had to, Bart."

"Yeah, I know. You always do." Bart looked again at the rabbit, which had nestled deeper inside Beau's hat. Then he looked at Beau again. "Come on up. Let's get you both dried off and warm. We can figure out what to do with the rabbit in the morning."

He had a feeling they were going to regret this somehow, but for now, Beau's smile was worth it.


End file.
